1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to packaging of products having digital content stored on a tangible medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
Sales of music, movies, software and other media products represent a market of significant size worldwide. Consumers purchase a variety of digital products stored on media such as compact disks (CDs), digital video disks (DVDs), audio and video tapes, etc. Due to the ease of reproduction and industry concerns about piracy, most media products may not be returned once opened. Currently the tamper-resistant enclosures in which these products are sold have various means for determining whether they have been opened, and therefore not returnable for credit or refund.
As the capacity of affordable storage media increases, larger volumes of content may be stored on a single medium. The possibility exists to package significant amounts of content, such as the entire recordings of a musical artist, a collection of several movies, or complex software products and bundles. These products may entail a significantly higher cost to the consumer than current offerings, such as a single album CD, or a single DVD movie. This higher cost means that the consumer is more likely to spend time evaluating the product before purchasing. Unfortunately, the higher cost may also entice some individuals to steal the content.
Currently, several inefficient methods for evaluating these products exist. For example, a consumer may listen to introductory pieces of songs on an album at a kiosk. The consumer may rent a movie to view prior to purchasing a copy of the very same movie. Furthermore, the consumer may be able to download a “stripped down” version of a software product in order to evaluate it prior to purchasing. These options often dictate the manner and method of evaluation, as well as require the consumer to set aside time during business hours for the task of product evaluation.
The methods available for consumers to evaluate products are very diverse in nature, and are often inadequate for a thorough evaluation. As the amount of content that is packaged increases, and consequently the price increases, the need for a means of exhaustive evaluation by the consumer will grow. From the vendor's standpoint, it will be even more important to ensure that content is not pirated or copied and returned for credit, therefore allowing returns after the product is opened is not a viable option.
A method or apparatus that allows comprehensive evaluation of the product may enhance the value of the product, result in greater sales volume, and higher customer satisfaction levels. It would be desirable, therefore to be able to access product content or other information for the purpose of product evaluation without breaching the original packaging, so that the product may be evaluated. It would be further desirable if the consumer could evaluate the product content either in the store prior to purchase or at their home or business after the purchase but while the product is still in a condition suitable to be returned to the store for credit.